Put Your Business on Autopilot

Getting caught in the operational aspects of their business is a trap that many business owners fall into. It begins to occupy so much of their time that they have time little left for activities that actually generate income.

It is therefore essential for coaches to create systems to handle the administrative tasks for them so that they can spend their time building the business.  If you do not, you will spend half of your time handling the mind-numbing tasks rather than generating real income. You can easily triple your business in half the time by automating the small day to day tasks.

Streamline all of the administrative tasks to be as efficient and self-sufficient as possible. By putting the details on autopilot, you are then free to do the things that are most important to you and your coaching business.

Here are a few suggestions to help you accomplish this:

• Have a phone script handy to minimize your time on the phone
• Automate follow-up and contact
• Use a database to manage your clients and prospective clients
• Create a template for all of your correspondence and office documents. For example: Invitations for all the different programs you offer, follow-up letters, enquiry letters, thank you notes, promotional letters, request for testimonials, affiliate proposals, financial details, etc.
• Create a systems to put the following on autopilot: your referral process, your educational marketing material, managing operational
• Key Performance Indicators

The following resources are available to help you put your coaching business on autopilot:

For E-Commerce try:

• FatFreeCart – a tool to create a shopping cart on your site
• PayPal – automates payment for your online sales
• ClickBank – also automates payment
• Verisign – important for online payment security

For Business Finance and Accounting use:

• Quickbooks, Quicken, MYOB – accounting software
• Easeaccounting – online accounting
• Office.com – productivity tools
• Logiforms.com – tools to manage data

Streamline Communications with:

• MSN Messenger and or Skype – instant messaging and internet phone
• QNext – file sharing and broadcasting
• Logiforms.com – tools for data management

To manage your customers use:

• Client Compass – client management for coaches
• ACT!, Maximizer Enterprise 9 – relationship management

Manage your database with:

• FileMaker Pro
• Microsoft Access

Affiliate Programs:

• Affiliate Showcase
• Associate Programs
• Find a Coach

Market Research tools:

• Create Surveys
• Survey console
• Web Stats

The goal is to automate and systematize as much of your business as possible. Search for software and programs that can help you accomplish this. Begin by making a list of functions you do on a regular basis and then see if there is a system or program that will do it for you. Start with the task that is more important or takes the most time and imagine what you might do with it if you were to go on vacation for week. Could someone do it for you without any help?  Then move on to the next most important task and create a system for it. Before you know it the mundane aspects of your coaching business will be on autopilot and you will have time on your hands to do the things you enjoy doing the most.